Over recent months, member states including the UK have been conducting wargames across Europe - with tens of thousands of troops partaking in Exercise Steadfast Defender.
Finnish President said joining the alliance made his country a 'front-line state'. Tens of thousands of troops have been involved in Exercise Steadfast Defender NATO drills set to take place close to the Russia n border in Finland 'increase the risk of military incidents', Moscow has warned as the alliance prepares for largescale wargames in the Nordic country.
Over recent months, member states including the UK have been conducting wargames across northern and eastern Europe - with tens of thousands of troops partaking in Steadfast Defender, the largest NATO exercise in decades. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak address a press conference at the Warsaw Armoured Brigade on April 23, 2024
Finland, which became the 31st NATO member in April 2023, has a 1,340-kilometer land border with Russia that runs mostly through thick forests in the south and rugged landscape in the Arctic north. 'Finland and Sweden play a key role in promoting peace. It sounds paradoxical, but that is precisely why we want a strong military and why we joined NATO,' he added.
Their accession to the alliance added the final puzzle piece around the shores of the Baltic Sea - a crucial maritime gateway for Russia, making it easier for NATO to exert control and reinforce its vulnerable Baltic states. It comes as a fleet of nine British Army Apache attack helicopters is headed to Finland to join the training mission there.
A pilot prepares an Apache helicopter as a fleet of more than a dozen helicopters prepare to take off He said it is 'very easy to focus on events in Ukraine' but that 'our role within Nato is to be ready for all threats'.
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